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Muhammad I of Berbera
Muhammad I "the Magnificent" of Berbera (16 December 769-) was the king of Berbera from 10 September 774, succeeding Yusuf of Berbera. Biography Muhammad was born on 16 December 769, the son of Yusuf of Berbera and Queen Basr of Berbera. Through his father, he was a sayyid, a descendant of Husayn ibn Ali and was of Arab descent; his mother was a black Somali woman. Muhammad looked more like his father, having fair skin and Arab facial features. On 9 January 771 he was granted the County of Busaso at the age of one, and on 10 September 774 be became the new ruler of the Kingdom of Berbera after his father died. His mother Basr served as his regent during his childhood. Muhammad became betrothed to Princess Shola of the Abbasid Empire on 2 December 774, with Caliph al-Mahdi approving of the proposal. Muhammad embarked on military campaigns of his own when he was just a child, as well as securing political ties; he betrothed his brother Omar to marry Princess Sheeftah of Africa to form an alliance. On 10 February 781, at the age of 11, he acquired the traits of a lunatic, hearing voices in his head. On 2 June 781, Muhammad decided to campaign for the first time, fighting against King Mekonnen of Shewa. By 9 August, Shewa had already been destroyed, and he appointed his brother Omar as the new King of Shewa as a puppet, not knowing that granting him the Duchy of Shewa would give him independence. On 3 October, Muhammad embarked on another major campaign, fighting against the Solomonid dynasty of Abyssinia in hopes of conquering all of Abyssinia's lands in East Africa. On 5 August 783, Muhammad conquered African Abyssinia, leaving the Abyssinians of Rema Armah of Abyssinia isolated in Yemen, and he gave out several realm titles to his courtiers and vassals as rewards for their loyalty. On 5 May 784, he conquered Gojjam and in 786 conquered Gondar. Muhammad came of age in December 785, and on 13 February 786 he decided to perform the hajj to Mecca. Queen Mother Basr served as his regent, and Muhammad gave an old man bread in return for a hadith. He learned that the Prophet, according to Ibn Ma'sud, said that "Truthfulness leads to piety and piety leads to the Garden. A man should be truthful until he is written down as truthful in the sight of Allah. Lying leads to deviance and deviance leads to the Fire. A person lies to the point that he is written down as a liar in the sight of Allah." He performed the tawaf, shouting only on the first three circuits due to his humble nature, and he felt invigorated after performing the sa'i between the hills of Safa and Marwah. Sheikh Yazid of Tarsos and some fellow pilgrims saved Muhammad from some bandits on 21 April 786, and Muhammad and Yazid became friends. He decided to arrange a betrothal between his brother Ibrahim and Yazid's daughter Sadiya bint Yazid to link the two families together. On 30 April 786, Muhammad returned home from the hajj, and he invited Prince Ja'far of the Abbasid Caliphate to his court, creating him "Count Ja'far of Gondar" and marrying him to his mother, Queen Mother Basr. On 11 August, he appointed Baron Abdirahman of Habru as the Chief Qadi of Berbera. Just five days later, he conquered Semien, and he conquered Damot by year's end. On 26 November 786, to celebrate his victory over Damot, Muhammad decided to hold a furusiyya tournament to decide who the best warrior in the land was. He gave the Chiefdom of Damot to Tesfaye, the second-place winner, as a token of his gratitude. By 16 March 788, Muhammad had increased the size of Berbera by conquering Chief Thoma of Kassala's land. Hayya and Trinkitat fell towards the end of that year. Muhammad decided to increase the influence of Berbera by marrying into the Muhallabids, the ruling family of Egypt, marrying Queen Maryam of Berbera, Queen Nafisa of Berbera, and Queen Samira of Berbera, the three daughters of Sultan Yazid of Muhallabid Sultanate. In the following years, Muhammad conquered his way up the coast of the Red Sea, seizing Nubia in 789. In 790, he arrested Count Ravai of Tadjoura for poisoning his wine, betraying Muhammad's trust. Family Muhammad, as a Muslim, was permitted to have four wives. They were: *Princess Shola of the Abbasid Empire (18 December 770-) **Muhammad II of Berbera (13 May 789-) *Queen Maryam of Berbera (11 November 770-) *Queen Nafisa of Berbera (23 September 771-) *Queen Samira of Berbera (17 January 771-) Gallery Muhammad I of Berbera.png|Muhammad upon becoming king Category:769 births Category:Berberan kings Category:Berberans Category:Kings Category:Sunnis Category:Somalis Category:Afro-Arabs